This week Persad center announced that it would be ending it’s LGBTQ Youth programs because the state funding those programs had relied on has expired. One employee was laid off because of the programs end, according to Executive Director Carlos Torres.
“LGBTQ youth continues to be a priority for us and to provide services for youth,” says Torres. Torres explained that the funding from the state was part of a three-year grant program that expired on June 30.
Lyndsey Sickler who ran the Youth programming said in a Facebook post: “I’m glad for the time spent, relationships built not only with staff, but with all the youth and young adults I’ve had the joy of serving through Persad’s various community programs over 16 years.”
Persad Center employees recently formed a union and rumors about Persad’s overall funding has cast doubts on the longevity of the LGBTQ mental health and counseling center’s services.